All-Time Wins Record Within Bruins' Grasp: Boston Now +300 To Win Stanley Cup

The playoffs are now right around the corner and we have once again seen some shake-ups amongst the top contenders’ odds at winning the Stanley Cup.

As per usual the Bruins remain in the number one spot owning a +300 line with sportsbooks. From +290 last week this is just a slight market correction as the Bruins have been on fire as of late going 9-1-0 in their last 10 games as they are on track to set the NHL’s all-time wins record of 62.

Stanley Cup Champion

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Behind them, the defending champion Avalanche find themselves at +550, the same odds they had last week. Colorado has also been playing at a high level as of late with an 8-2-0 record over their last 10 games. The Avalanche are two points behind both the Wild and Stars in the division but have played two fewer games, should they capitalize on these games in hand and gain home-ice advantage for the first two rounds of the playoffs, they may see their odds move closer to +400.

In third place, once again is the Carolina Hurricanes. Carolina has been deadlocked into the +800 number for four weeks in a row now. They have been stumbling lately, having won just five of their last ten. 

Here’s where it gets interesting. The Maple Leafs, who have occupied this fourth spot for months, has fallen two spots and now sit at +1000. Toronto has struggled like the Hurricanes lately, winning just five of their last 10. Both the Golden Knights and Devils saw their odds shift to +950 to jump ahead. Last week, the Knights were at +1000 and the Devils at +1100. 

Playoff Picture Still Developing, NHL Plans On Hockey Down Under Next Season

From the playoff picture solidifying itself to schedule planning for overseas games next year, there was no shortage of news to come out of the NHL world in the past week. 

The Eastern Conference playoff race continues to be a closely contested three-horse race for the final two wildcard spots. The Florida Panthers are currently on the outside looking in, sitting at 85 points in 77 games. The Pittsburgh Penguins are just a knick above them at 86 in 77 whilst the New York Islanders are in first place with 87 points, yet they’ve played 78 games. This fight is almost certain to continue to the very last day of the season, which should lead to some highly entertaining games for fans as one or all of them could be faced with a ‘win and you’re in’ scenario. 

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In the Western Conference, the Seattle Kraken are fairly comfortably locked into the first wild card spot with 90 points in 75 games played. Behind them, with three teams fighting for the second spot, is where the real race lies. The Winnipeg Jets currently hold this position with 89 points in 77 games. Both the Calgary Flames and Nashville Predators, however, are hot on their tails as Calgary’s sitting on 87 points in 77 games and Nashville has 84 points in 75 games played. All three of these teams have a realistic shot at making the playoffs and much like the East this is likely to come down to the wire. 

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In an attempt to grow the game and promote it to non-traditional hockey countries, the NHL announced that at the beginning of next season, they’d be taking their product to the land down under as Australia will play host to the Los Angeles Kings vs. Arizona Coyotes with the added potential for another two teams to join them. 

In general news, the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning are officially locked in as first-round opponents in what will be a rematch of last year’s hard-fought seven-game series. The Boston Bruins clinched the President’s Trophy and became just the fourth team in NHL history to reach 60 wins in a season. 

Tampa Bay Lightning @ New York Rangers-120 (6)

On Wednesday, the Tampa Bay Lightning head to MSG to take on the New York Rangers in what could potentially be a preview of the Eastern Conference Final. 

The two strong teams, who are each third in their respective divisions, have split the season series thus far one game apiece. 

Both teams have been playing quality hockey as of late with the Rangers sporting a 7-2-1 record over their last 10 games while the Lightning are 6-4 over that same span, yet have won their last three in a row. 

In that three-game win streak mentioned, Tampa Bay netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy has been on another planet allowing just one goal to go with two shutouts and a .990 save percentage. While his numbers aren’t quite as impressive as Vasilevskiy, Igor Shesterkin has also been all-world in his last three starts allowing two goals per game with a .932 save percentage and going 2-0-1 in the process. 

Now, you may have already inferred this when I mentioned this is a potential playoff matchup… but I'm going with the under here. Not only do I rarely, if ever, deviate from my viewpoint that playoff-like games lead to lower scores, but also, I simply don’t want to bet against these two Vezina-winning goalies. Each of these netminders have been in big playoff situations before and have stonewalled opposing teams for entire series. Because of this, I’m betting on those two guys to look to send a statement to their potential playoff foes that it’s going to take something special to make that puck tickle the twine. 

As far as the moneyline goes, I like the Rangers. They are 22-12-4 at home this season while Tampa Bay are just 18-19-1 as the visitors. Yes, the Lightning are on a hot streak. However, they have been inconsistent all year, and unable to sustain these high peaks of play for long periods of time. I think it's time for them to come back down to earth as the Rangers will use home ice to their advantage and take the win.

Edmonton Oilers-350 @ Anaheim Ducks (7)

Wednesday's other game, featuring the Edmonton Oilers and Anaheim Ducks, does not project to be as competitive. I’ll spoil it for you right now, I am going all in on the Oilers. Moneyline, puck line, McDavid total points over 1.5, I am hammering the Oilers in this one. 

Edmonton beat the Ducks 6-0 on Saturday, and 6-2 back in January after the Ducks took the first meeting of the season 4-3. 

These two Pacific Division counterparts could not be trending in more opposite directions. The Oilers have been the hottest team in the league as of late decimating opponents on their way to a 9-0-1 record in their past 10 games. The Ducks on the other hand are 1-9-0 which includes a current eight-game losing streak. 

As I prematurely mentioned earlier, I will be betting on the Oilers moneyline and -1.5 puck line for this game. They will be massive favorites coming in so if you’re looking for value just stick to the puck line. Despite their recent success, Edmonton is still sitting in third place in the Pacific, just one point behind the LA Kings. Home ice is pivotal in a playoff series so it’s safe to say that although this may seem like a walkover game, the Oilers will be taking it very seriously. The Ducks on the other hand, well, you see the record in their last 10, they are making a valiant effort at getting themselves to the top of the Bedard sweepstakes and don’t have all that much motivation for this game. 

I also love the over in this game. The Oilers have scored 20 goals during their current four-game win streak while the Ducks have allowed 20 over their last four. I think that with the way the Ducks are tanking and how the Oilers are playing, Edmonton will score at least five or six alone meaning Anaheim only has to contribute one or two goals to surpass the over. This is a very plausible outcome as for as great as the Oilers have been, their goals allowed per game still remains just 19th in the league, giving me optimism that the Ducks can find a couple of goals here or there.